CAA Tournament Experience With Commissioner Tom Yeager

CAA Commissioner Tom Yeager joined Scott and Jeremy to recap the CAA Tournament Experience this past weekend in Baltimore. Over the weekend fans of William & Mary saw their team win a thrilling double overtime game against Hofstra 92-91. Tom discussed the significance of such an exciting game. “That may have been probably the best tournament game we have had in 30 years. It was one of the all-time best games I have ever seen from drama and everything else. A 3 point shot down 2 with .5 seconds remaining, it doesn’t get any closer than that.”

While the CAA is a mid-major conference, they have had some success in the NCAA Tournament. Tom discussed what its like for players from a smaller school to be able to play on such a large stage. “You can easily forget that our two final four teams were 11 seeds coming in. Neither of them were conference champions, and they advanced all the way to the Final Four. Our teams have won NCAA Tournament games as a 15, 14, 13, you name it seed. Part of it is being there and dreaming about playing in the NCAA Tournament is something these men have been thinking about since they first learned how to dribble a basketball. For one batch tonight, they’re climbing the ladder with a pair of scissors in their hand and their dream is realized.”

Baltimore has been the host city for the CAA Conference Tournament for the past couple of years. Tom discussed with Scott and Jeremy what it is like to the Tournament in Baltimore. “It’s teriffic. I was walking around this afternoon and ran into some Northeastern fans at the Inner Harbor. They had some friends who wanted to come down but they noticed that every flight from Boston to Baltimore after 2 o’clock this afternoon was sold out… Baltimore is a fabulous host. We’ve got to continue to build on the excitement that we have generated the last two years. This is the kind of tournament for the casual basketball fan. It’s the show, it’s not just another game… That’s what is so special about March Madness, and why it’s such a unique event and why it’s a real treasure for the communities to host these types of championships.”